The miners didn't go on strike due to terrible conditions… the miners went on strike to try to prevent the closure of their pits which were unprofitable at the

The miners didn't go on strike due to terrible conditions… the miners went on strike to try to prevent the closure of their pits which were unprofitable at the time. The miners strike is always blamed on Thatcher but Scargill has a lot to answer for - previous strike ballots had rejected strike action so the union decided to call a strike without a ballot. I think Thatcher took the wrong approach but given with the way the unions in the 70's had tried to bring down governments I don't think she had much choice but to face them down. Thatcher's government failure was to repair the communities after pit closures but encourage new business etc to set up there. Scargill's hubris and ego led the miners on a journey of suffering, remember this is the man who was still claiming the union had an obligation to house him long after he had retired. Also don't forget the striking miners killed a man by throwing a concrete block through the windscreen of the truck(?) he was driving. The miners strike has become a popular myth of how Thatcher destroyed the workers but the NUM has a lot to answer for.